Skip to main content

Barnes & Noble’s new Nook GlowLight Plus is waterproof and made of metal

It’s been a while since Barnes & Noble introduced a new ebook reader that isn’t a Samsung tablet in disguise. Finally, the book seller is revamping its Nook GlowLight with the GlowLight Plus, an ebook reader that’s not only easy on the eyes, but also dust and water proof. Thanks to its IP67 rating, it can be submerged in water to a depth of around a meter for up to 30 minutes, and still work when it comes out the other side. Why is this cool? So you you can take it to the beach or into the bath tub with you.

While most ebook readers stick to rubbery or glossy plastic for the body, Barnes & Noble opted for an aluminum back plate in a nice bronze color on the new GlowLight Plus. The front is made of a sturdy white plastic, which has a grippy texture for comfort. Even though it’s made of metal, the ebook reader is thin and light, weighing just 6.9 ounces, which is lighter than both the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite and the Kobo Aura H2O, the latter being its only other waterproof competitor.

It has a high-resolution, E Ink screen with 300 dpi, enhanced contrast, and twice as many pixels as the original Nook GlowLight. The screen doesn’t have any glare, and text looks crisp and clear on the virtual page. B&N offers adjustable ambient lighting so the Nook doesn’t blind you when you’re in a dim room or reading at night. You can choose between a number of hand-crafted fonts, too, in case you don’t like the look of the default text. The Nook’s battery should last for six weeks of use, if you read for 30 minutes every day with the screen at 30 percent brightness, with wireless connectivity off.

The screen doesn’t have any glare, and text looks crisp and clear on the virtual page.

Barnes & Noble makes it easy for you to find good books, and with B&N Readout, you can preview them before you buy. The GlowLight Plus will show you a selection of different excerpts from books you may like each day in the hopes that you splurge on new titles. It’s an unobtrusive feature, though, so you don’t feel like you’re getting hit over the head with ads. The book seller is quick to point out that its ebook reader doesn’t have any ads invading your quiet reading experience like Amazon does. You can, of course, get any books, magazines, or newspapers from the B&N store, and you’re welcome to browse around on the Nook just like you would in the bookstore.

If you happen to have kids, or you share your Nook with someone else, you can set up separate profiles for different users. In settings, you can restrict certain profiles to ensure that your tender six-year-old doesn’t stumble across Fifty Shades of Grey or something like that.

Barnes and Noble Nook
Malarie Gokey/Digital Trends
Malarie Gokey/Digital Trends

Should the new Nook GlowLight Plus strike your fancy, you can get it at Barnes & Noble stores and online at NOOK.com for $130. Barnes & Noble Members get a 10-percent discount, too. B&N also has several covers and sleeves for the new Nook, including one that authors can sign if you’re into author signings. You can also draw your own design on that cover, but beware — It’s permanent.

To sweeten the deal further, the book seller gives buyers their choice of three books from a selection of 20 great titles, such as The Gravedigger’s Daughter by Joyce Carol Oates, Think Big, Act Bigger by Jeffrey Hayzlett, and On A Night Like This by Barbara Freethy. Additionally, B&N gives new Nook owners a $5 credit for its store, and buyers can also choose three magazines from a selection of more than 25 magazines, including Cosmopolitan, Esquire, and Food Network Magazine. All in all, it’s a pretty great deal, but it’ll be interesting to see how well it does against Amazon’s latest ebook readers.

Malarie Gokey
Former Digital Trends Contributor
As DT's Mobile Editor, Malarie runs the Mobile and Wearables sections, which cover smartphones, tablets, smartwatches, and…
AT&T just made it a lot easier to upgrade your phone
AT&T Storefront with logo.

Do you want to upgrade your phone more than once a year? What about three times a year? Are you on AT&T? If you answered yes to those questions, then AT&T’s new “Next Up Anytime” early upgrade program is made for you. With this add-on, you’ll be able to upgrade your phone three times a year for just $10 extra every month. It will be available starting July 16.

Currently, AT&T has its “Next Up” add-on, which has been available for the past several years. This program costs $6 extra per month and lets you upgrade by trading in your existing phone after at least half of it is paid off. But the new Next Up Anytime option gives you some more flexibility.

Read more
Motorola is selling unlocked smartphones for just $150 today
Someone holding the Moto G Stylus 5G (2024).

Have you been looking for phone deals but don’t want to spend a ton of money on flagship devices from Apple and Samsung? Have you ever considered investing in an unlocked Motorola? For a limited time, the company is offering a $100 markdown on the Motorola Moto G 5G. It can be yours for just $150, and your days and nights of phone-shopping will finally be over!

Why you should buy the Motorola Moto G 5G
Powered by the Snapdragon 480+ 5G CPU and 4GB of RAM, the Moto G delivers exceptional performance across the board. From UI navigation to apps, games, and camera functions, you can expect fast load times, next to no buffering, and smooth animations. You’ll also get up to 128GB of internal storage that you’ll be able to use for photos, videos, music, and any other mobile content you can store locally. 

Read more
The Nokia 3210 is the worst phone I’ve used in 2024
A person holding the Nokia 3210, showing the screen.

Where do I even start with the Nokia 3210? Not the original, which was one of the coolest phones to own back in a time when Star Wars: Episode 1 -- The Phantom Menace wasn’t even a thing, but the latest 2024 reissue that has come along to save us all from digital overload, the horror of social media, and the endless distraction that is the modern smartphone.

Except behind this facade of marketing-friendly do-goodery hides a weapon of torture, a device so foul that I’d rather sit through multiple showings of Jar Jar Binks and the gang hopelessly trying to bring back the magic of A New Hope than use it.
The Nokia 3210 really is that bad

Read more